Best Kickboxing Bags To Try: Our Honest Review

To be a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter, you need to put in hours of work a week just to keep up with your competitors. It can be hard to find time in your week to make it to your MMA classes, and if you’re in that boat, you might want to take a look at some kickboxing bags. While it doesn’t seem like there’d be a difference in quality, there actually is. So before you impulse buy the first one you see online, take a look at our list of the six top choices.

6 Best Kickboxing Bags

1

Century Aerobic Wavemaster

When completely filled up, the Aerobic Wavemaster kickboxing bag is a heavy 170-pounds. It’s got an adjustable height range of 53.5 to 65.5 inches, and has a thick layer of foam covered by poly-shell, providing a smooth striking area for you.

Pros:

Cons:

Might be too light for stronger, more advanced users

The material is rough and can cause carpet burn like sensations if used without gear

2

Everlast 70 Pound

If you want a hanging one, this kickboxing bag is your calling. It’s 70-pounds, which is a great inbetween weight that can be used by most fighters. It has a mixture of shredded fibers, which is a good mixture to keep it even throughout. It also comes with some extra gear, like an adjustable height chain, gloves and a bungee cord to increase resistance of the bag.

Pros:

It has a chain that allows you to adjust the height to suit your needs

Heavy duty, with a good exterior and solid stitching

Comes with a bungee cord that attaches to the bottom to an optional weight for stabilization

Cons:

Due to the weight of the product, the packaging might be damaged when it reaches you

Some people complain that the sand filling may cause hard spots

3

Century The Original Wavemaster Freestanding

The Original Wavemaster kickboxing bag has more versatility than its counterpart the Aerobic Wavemaster with its 19-inch height range from 47 to 68 inches. Also, when completely filled, it’s a whopping 270-pounds.

Pros:

Great product for anyone not wanting to drill holes in their ceiling to hang a regular punching one

Very durable – one user reported his lasting 12 years already

Cons:

When water-filled, it might be too light for full-contact

The base tends to move and makes a thudding noise, which is not good if you live in an apartment

4

Century Wavemaster XXL Training

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With a durable vinyl cover with high-density foam is one of the most ideal surfaces you’re going to find out there. The Century Wavemaster has a low base so it doesn’t wobble as much as the other stand up ones. One of the few downsides of this one though is that it doesn’t have an adjustable height, but at 69 inches, it’s a good height that most fighters won’t need to adjust.

Pros:

Product is portable and can be moved anywhere you like (provided you empty the base)

Perfect for people with a lot of power in their kicks and punches

Cons:

Some users have reported the product wobbling and moving around with strong kicks

5

Everlast PowerCore Freestanding

If you want to save money, the Everlast PowerCore kickboxing bag is a great deal for you, but that isn’t to say this isn’t good quality. It has tri-disc foam structure so the energy is dispersed around the bag, keeping it from shaking as much. It also has a PowerTransferRing collar that helps the foam absorb your strikes, leaving less soreness in your body after working out with it. This is a great choice for a beginner. But for someone more experienced who has more power in their hits, you might be out a kickboxing bag sooner rather than later, as its durability doesn’t have the top track record.

Pros:

Can be placed in any convenient spot and works especially well for people that rent and cannot drill holes in their ceiling

Cons:

The plastic part connecting it to the base tends to break quite easily

Some people say the base moves around too much for them to use it effectively

6

Century BOB Body Opponent

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It’s your ex, no it’s your inlaw, no it’s BOB, the fake man that’s actually a kickboxing bag! BOB tends to be a fan favorite for his human-like appearance. It has an 18-inch height change from 60 to 78, and when fully filled, is 270-pounds. And Amazon gives you a one-year warranty with purchase of BOB.

Pros:

Cons:

Base is not sturdy enough and tends to move around a lot

Some people have concerns about the quality of the product

Different Kinds

Before making a decision, you want to know the two different kinds and what differentiates them. You have your hanging bags and your free standing bags. Hanging bags are typically screwed into your ceiling, so once they’re in place, there isn’t much flexibility in moving it around.

​They are typically used more for boxers, and provide more training for your timing, speed and accuracy due to the swinging movement. The second type is the standing one, which is much easier to move around compared to the hanging bag. It doesn’t provide the movement the hanging one offers, but is more versatile as it can be put on the ground to work on ground attacks with your knees and elbows.

How To Choose the Right Filler Material For Your Kickboxing Bag

There are also several different kinds of material you can use to fill them. There’s sand, which gives you a heavier bag and provides a very consistent striking experience. It’s only issue is that sand tends to settle at the bottom, resulting in a harder striking pad at the bottom. Another filler material used is shredded fibers, which is very similar to sand, except it doesn’t shift to the bottom like sand does.

Shredded fibers are often mixed with sand to get the top qualities from both fillers. The last material used is water, which is known for giving a more realistic feeling when you hit it. It’s most ideal when used in standing ones, so when you want to move it, you can empty the water to move it easily.

​Now for the weight, you’d want to take a few things into consideration. How experienced are you, how much do you weigh and how much movement in the bag do you want? If you have years of MMA experience under your belt, you may want to look into one that is around 80-pounds.

Unless you’re weighing in close to 180-pounds, then you probably want to get one at 100-pounds. One thing you want to avoid is getting one that is too light. Like I said earlier, a little movement can simulate a realistic experience for a fighter, but too much sway in it can just be a nuisance. But if you get one that is too heavy, you run the risk of injury if you hit it with improper form.

Conclusion

The Best Kickboxing Bags may seem like an easy purchase, but there are actually several factors to take into account. From quality of the foam and filling material, to the weight of the bag, you should take a look at several options, and pick carefully, because the decision isn’t as simple as it may sound.